It is our job to create more golfers

On a National Broadcast of the World Match Play Championship, PGA Tour Commissioner, Tim Finchem, said more people are playing golf, just less of it. Does that even make any sense? Let’s see, I have a business with 100 customers who patronize me 10 times a month. If I do my math correctly, that is 1,000 purchases. Now I hire the commish and he sends me another 100 customers. Two hundred new customers, I’m jumping for joy and business is booming. I get greedy and service starts to suffer. My customers are only visiting me 4 times a month. But hey, I have more customers, they are just coming less. So instead of 1,000 purchases, I am now sending out 800 products each month. Does this sound like the way to sum up the state of my business?

The key words in the statement are “more golfers.” Our responsibility as professionals is to help get them playing more. That is an area where we can do better. I play golf at a lot of different courses in my area. I can’t tell you the number of times I run across a pro or staff member who could care less if I am there to play or not. We now live in a world where people have many more options to occupy their time. We can’t take for granted that golf is going to be on the top of the list. We pros can make the difference. Above and beyond should be the motto. As teachers we interact with students all the time. Most just want to enjoy the game and be with friends. So make it pleasant for them. Start a league, introduce them to each other or hold a free clinic for former students. Keep them involved. We can keep the game flourishing.